What happens when you fight with a customer - then throw them out of your store? That's exactly what I witnessed in a retail store on the weekend. I unsuspectingly wandered into a store in a respectable suburb to find two sales assistants standing sombrely behind the counter staring at a customer who was in the doorway. The customer, making sure as many people as possible could hear her, accused the sales assistants of not knowing how to treat customers.

The sales assistants, trying to avoid drawing unnecessary attention to the situation, quietly asked the customer to leave. But this customer wasn't about to go without a fight. She embarked on stinging tirade about what the sales assistants had done, then ended with: "I hope you lose all your business. And I hope you lose all your customers!"

One of the sales assistants, unable to hold back any longer, spat: "As long as we lose you as a customer, that's ok!"

This caused a scene in an otherwise uneventful suburban shopping village. It made it uncomfortable for other customers in the store. And - believe it or not - it wasn't long before two policemen were called to attend to the feud.
So what caused this bitter exchange to escalate? Was the customer a shoplifter? Did the customer cause any disruption? Were the sales assistants guilty of harrassment?

It appears the explanation is somewhat mundane and slightly ridiculous. The customer was sniffling and appeared to have a runny nose. She was browsing in the store and touched some of the products. The sales assistants were concerned that she was spreading her germs around and asked her not to touch the products. Undoubtedly embarrassed and angered by the school marm-ish directive, she let her feelings be known.

The old adage is that the customer is always right and sometimes, that's the best approach to take. You keep the customer happy, they don't spread negative stories (let alone germs) about your business, and the police can get on with attending to more important issues.

However, are there some customers that simply aren't worth having? As the sales assistant said: "As long as we lose you as a customer, that's ok!"

While it's smart to define your customers and sometimes cull them to keep only the ones you really want, how can you ditch a customer without any negative repercussions?

Are you promising your customers something they actually want? A lifetime ago, when I worked in women's magazines, every month the editor made sure that the cover of the magazine sold a promise. A promise that something inside the magazine would help the reader lose weight, find a date, get clear skin, or create a better life. It's a formula that worked every time because it became one of the highest selling magazines in the country.

The same principle can be applied to small business. In your marketing or advertising are you selling a promise. More importantly, are you selling one that customers actually want?

Too often, we see advertisements to slogans like: "The leading security firm in Australia". While that might be true, is that what the customer is looking for? I don't think so. If a customer needs the services of a security firm, they want safety, reliability and, obviously, the utmost security. So if you only have space for a few words to describe your promise - say on your business card or home page - then how about something like: "You'll never have to worry about your valuables/assets again."

When I was overseas recently, I came across a discount store called "You Pay Less". The name of the business was straightforward and to the point. Interestingly, another discount store set up in competition. They imaginatively decided to call themselves "Why Pay More?"

While I don't know the financial results of either business, my bet is on "You Pay Less". As a consumer, you know exactly what you're going to get. You're going to pay less. This business has its promise embedded in its business name.

It's tempting to fall into the trap of boasting about things that you think are important - awards, experience, great staff, and so on. These things certainly are important and do need to be promoted. However, if you have one shot to talk to your customers - in your slogan, an advertisement or Google Adwords campaign, don't waste valuable marketing space on ineffective words. Work out the promise that your customers want to hear.

It follows that if you promise something to customers, you better deliver. So make sure that you have the goods or services to back up your claims.

When someone in your industry or franchise network stuffs up, can you suffer the fallout? You've heard jokes about used car salespeople and real estate agents. People in these industries battle unfair stereotypes all the time. While they may be used to being the butt of the odd joke, what would you do if another business in your industry or franchise network acted inappropriately - and you ended up tarred with the same brush?

This week, a franchisee of Bakers Delight was disciplined by the company after the franchisee wrote a letter to staff threatening them with the sack if they called in sick. According to the news report, Bakers Delight issued a statement: 'Bakers Delight deems this behaviour to be completely unacceptable and as soon as the company was made aware of the letter action was taken to retract the requests.".

I'm sure other Bakers Delight franchisees weren't too happy with the negative publicity. If you are at risk of being confused with an unethical operator or competitor in your industry, it's vital to differentiate yourself from the competition. Don't assume that consumers will eventually figure it out. Or that you should take the high road and simply not get involved. When I raised this issue with a small business entrepreneur, he said that he'd "just keep out of it". While it may be polite to mind your own business, the irony is that you're not. In fact, "keeping out of it" could potentially ruin your business.

If there is any danger of being confused with an unethical operator, have a statement prepared so that you can respond with a well thought out answer in case any issues arise. The small business entrepreneur I spoke to said he didn't feel right about making any comment about the issue to his customers or the media because he didn't want to be seen disparaging another business owner.

The reality is that if you adopt a "no comment" approach, you could appear as guilty as sin - even though your intention is actually honourable (if a bit naive).

So what's the best way to differentiate yourself? I depends on how heinously the other operator has behaved. If they simply don't have a product which you think is as good as yours, then it could be a matter of positioning your product as superior. You don't have to diss their offering. Instead, point out the superior features of your products "compared to others in the market."

However, if the operator has done something downright illegal or abhorrent, don't be a afraid to make a clear statement that you are not associated with that business. Remember, your point here is to ensure that you are not confused with the other operator - it's not an opportunity to stand on a soapbox and tell consumers what you think of the other party's actions. Be careful you don't make any defamatory statements.

So you've been working from your spare bedroom or your garage and now it's time to expand. But your small business isn't ready to take on a commercial lease and commit to a hefty rent bill. So how can you expand without spending small fortune in rent?

Remote workers

One small business entrepreneur I know works from her home office. It's too small to accommodate another person so her employee works from home as well. They have set office hours and can remain in constant contact by email, instant messaging or Skype. And of course, there's the old fashioned way to stay in touch - the phone. Her IT guy has connected their computers so that it's like they are working off the same network. They can share files and databases. Clients are none the wiser and the whole operation works as if they are sitting together in the same office. She has successfully expanded with no additional rent expenses, just a few small initial costs to set up the technological infrastructure.

Serviced offices
Another small business entrepreneur I know is expanding out of her home office. Because she needs to receive many clients, she needs a physical office space to meet them. She's decided to lease a serviced office. There are an increasing number of serviced offices around catering for small- to medium-sized enterprises. These services offices are ideal because they can offer meeting rooms, secretarial services, access to couriers and photocopiers, usually on a pay-as-you-go basis. They usually have spick reception areas where you can meet your clients.

Subleasing and sharing
Many small business entrepreneurs choose to share with like-minded people, So it's common to find a graphic designer sharing space with a photographer or a copywriter. My chiropracter shares his rooms with massage therapists and a counsellor. Sharing with other like-minded entrepreneurs means you can potentially refer work to each other and your "hub" can serve as a one stop shop for someone who might eventually want to use all your services. If you are on the lookout for this sort of arrangement, join Google groups or networking forums which often advertise such spaces, or simply put the word out there. I know a small business entrepreneur who did just that - she sent out an email outlining her ideal office space - and within 24 hours someone had gotten back to her with a potential solution.

Work out of your main client's office
If you do a lot of work for a particular client and spend a great deal of time in their office, it may make sense to literally "move in". This way, you cut down a lot of travelling time and you are in the thick of it. Negotiate a low rent in exchange for them been able to access you more conveniently. However, make sure they understand that you will not be working for them 100 per cent of the time. I know a small business entrepreneur who did that for the first year of his business. It enabled him to establish his company and expand without a huge rent bill. Now, he has more clients and has moved into his own offices.

What happens when you become a franchisee and the franchisor really lets you down? Recently, I've been dealing with a small business entrepreneur who is a franchisee of a major real estate brand. I've been pretty impressed with his service and he runs his franchise with professionalism, efficiency and integrity.

Even though he is connected to a major brand and works under their "umbrella", he's run his suburban franchise for nine years, building it up to be a reputable business in the community.

Recently, I asked him for recommendations on some removalists and packers. I'm moving house and I want to hire people to do the job from the packing, moving to the unpacking at the other end.

He proudly pointed me to a new function on the real estate brand's main website. Franchisees don't have their own individual websites. Instead all traffic is directed to the "umbrella" site, which encourages people to submit queries online and obtain quotes from movers featured on their site.

It's a great idea and many other businesses use similar tools on their websites. I duly entered my details online and they appear to have disappeared into oblivion. No one's contacted me either by email or phone with a response, nor has there been any acknowledgement that a query has been made.

This isn't a major shock in itself. After all, queries made in this way can slip through the cracks. But I felt sorry for the franchisee. He's paying hard earned dollars to be part of a major brand, to tap into infrastructure and collective marketing efforts that should add value to his business. Not detract from it.

It's the first negative impression I've had of his business and the brand - and it's entirely out of his control. He's not even responsible for the site or the technology behind it. So he can't even find out where the query ended up.

It's a shame that a franchise can believe in and promote this new feature rolled out by the franchisor - and it turns out to be a dud.

Of course, it's not the first time a franchisee may think a franchisor has let them down. If you're a franchisee, has your franchisor lived up to your expectations?

One small business entrepreneur has enlisted the help of cute pooches to bring in customer leads. If you wander around the RSVP 07 Exhibition at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour (17-18 July, 2007), you'll find the who's who of the events industry showing their wares. Like many other trade shows, it can be a bunfight to entice attendees to your stall and encourage them to hand over their email address.

However, one savvy small business entrepreneur is banking on the cute and cuddly to get potential customers lining up to talk to him.

Jeremy Garling of event producers Great Southern Events has found an innovative enticement. Instead of handing out lollies, offering discount vouchers or encouraging people to enter competitions, Garling has created a "pooch pad" with eight week old puppies ready to stare soulfully into the eyes of unsuspecting passers-by.

If you visited the pooch pad yesterday (they're also there today) you could have played with the puppies and had your picture taken with them. And, of course, Garling and his crew are more than willing to email you the jpegs. (Smart and legitimate way to collect your email address.)

So why a pooch pad? It's not exactly the first thing you think of when you consider an event producer. Garling says: "We went to an industry seminar and heard what they were saying about attracting an audience. We then reviewed our target audience and asked ourselves what they all truly love. Our core market is made up of 25-40 year old females, who make up at least 80% of our market, and when we thought about what they love, we came up with the idea of using puppies."

While gimmicks can do wonders, they can also backfire if they aren't well executed. And even if they are implemented well, that's irrelevant if the gimmick doesn't translate into sales.

Garling believes that his pooches are paying off. "We've had a huge response so far and this is an event tailored strategically to our core business," he says. "However, it's not just about a gimmick. It's about strong follow up after the event. Stunts don't exist on their own, they're the beginning of strong communication, leading to sales."

On the weekend, someone said to me: "You're an entrepreneur. You like creating chaos for yourself because it gives you something to do!"

While entrepreneurs may not think they are actively seeking chaos, the reality is that the reason many people embrace entrepreneurship in the first place is because of the thrill of the start up, the exhilaration of growth and the adrenalin of success.

It might be hard to consider that chaos can be the driving force of a business, but that's because it can take many forms. Small business entrepreneurs typically multi-task, they are everything to everyone and are constantly on the lookout for new ideas and fresh approaches

Chaos management

I know one small business entrepreneur whose chaos management system can also be called her Blackberry. The device enables her to keep connected to staff, clients and suppliers. She can answer emails where ever she is (even lying under the covers, sick in bed with the flu - true story) and keep her business running. The organised chaos around her makes her feel needed. She says she's the glue that's holding everything together and that gives her a buzz.

Personal chaos

Another small business entrepreneur I know seems to have a fairly stable business - but he has a chaotic time when it comes to relationships. Every time a relationship ends (and there have been a few), he focuses on his business and spurs it on to new heights each time.

Chaos to keep interested

Yet another small business entrepreneur I spoke to loves the startup phase of business. He thrives on the atmosphere where it's all hands on deck, working on marketing plans one minute and business strategy the next. He admits that when the business gets going and is running smoothly, he gets bored and loses interest. He wants a new startup so he can be in the midst of chaos again.

Chaos can be good and bad. Channelled the wrong way and it can lead to unhealthy stress levels or bad business decisions. If you know that you thrive on chaos, it's important to keep your chaos focused. Instead of looking for a new business opportunity - and potentially risking what you've built up in your existing business - look for new opportunities in areas where you already have your foot in the door.

That way, you can harness the chaos factor to truly help you build your business, instead of relying on it to help you feel needed or keep you entertained.

There are two new business books sitting on my desk by Australian small business entrepreneurs. Writing your very own business book is a great way to build your profile, consolidate your ideas and position yourself as an expert in your field. Of course, it takes a hell of a lot of effort to write a book (I've written five and let me tell you, it's no easy feat), but the results can be worth it.

At the very least, you have a calling card to leave with prospects that showcases your expertise. Or, at the other end of the scale, you could end up with media exposure and a best seller.

However, if you want to write a business book, it's important to ensure it has substance. I've picked up a couple of business books which appear nothing more than a series of newsletter articles stuck together to form a fairly skinny book. Any business book worth it's cover price should leave readers with practical knowledge they can implement immediately. These two new business books have done just that.

Linda Hailey's book is called Your Business, Your Future: How to Predict and Harness Growth. Hailey is a small business consultant and seminar presenter. It is focused on growth and goes through the stages of the Start-up business owner, the Take-Off business owner, the Consolidation business owner, and the Expansion business owner. As I run a couple of very different small businesses myself - one in the Take-Off stage and one in the Consolidation stage - it's particularly useful. I am also about to launch a third venture, which will obviously be in the Start-Up stage.

The growth process is very different depending on where your business is at. The issues you face change and so do people's expectations. Coping with growth is a strategy in itself and one often overlooked by small business entrepreneurs, especially when they are so busy just running the damn thing!

The second book on my desk is Grant Hyman's A Practical Guide To Selling: What they teach at the University of the Pavement. Hyman is an expert in sales, an area that is the cornerstone of most businesses. While you may not have a sales force or even a dedicated sales person, the reality is that if you are a business owner, you must be focused on sales. And if there is no dedicated sales person, then you are IT.

Successful small business entrepreneurs know that they are constantly selling. Hyman doesn't go into esoteric philosophies on sales but gives practical advice on everything from beating the gatekeeper and cold-calling to cross-cultural selling and guerilla marketing.

Hailey and Hyman have successfully translated their expertise into books and are able to leverage this into speaking and consulting opportunities. Do you have a book in you and what would you write about?

A small business entrepreneur told me recently that he doesn't like it when people ask him for recommendations. He's loathe to recommend a plumber/doctor/graphic designer/lawyer/whatever in case the person ends up having a bad experience. If that happens, he says it reflects on him.

Then again, there are some small business entrepreneurs who want to give the impression of being extremely well-connected and will recommend someone simply because they have their business card.

And then there are people who are happy to make a recommendation but feel it's impolite or inappropriate to point out the positives and negatives of a supplier. They stick to polite references and feel it's not their place to voice any downsides.

The reality is that if you are looking for a recommendation you ideally want an honest and fair assessment. If you're providing the recommendation, omitting any negatives may seem like the polite thing to do but it's not particularly productive if someone ends up burnt because you've left out some key points.

Then you can have a scenario where you are looking for, say, an electrician or website designer and, after canvassing all in your network, no one can give you a recommendation. Where do you find one, short of closing your eyes and landing your finger somewhere in the phone book?

Networks like Women's Network Australia have a free referral service. It refers members in the network based on your locality or specific needs. So far, I've used them to find an efficient transcription service and a new lawyer. Interestingly, the service is called "Find a Woman" but my new lawyer is male as the network has male members.

Of course, there is no guarantee that finding someone through a network like this is any different to playing Bingo with the phone book. But at least there is a small chance that, since they understand the value of being in a network, they want to maintain a good reputation and would hope you will recommend them to others in the future.

Most small businesses survive and thrive on networking and referrals. Are you comfortable with giving recommendations? And what happens if your recommendation doesn't work out?

Don't leave it to major corporations. You can outsource your life and small business to India. We all know that there are major Australian corporations who outsource their call centres, back office, accounting departments and other operational functions offshore.

However, as a small business, you don't have to be left out in the cold. If you want to jump on the offshore outsourcing bandwagon, there are remote executive assistants in Bangalore happy to format your memos, prepare your Powerpoint presentations and answer your emails.

Of course the difference between outsourcing to a virtual assistant in Australia and one in Bangalore is the cost.

One provider of remote executive assistant services is Brickwork India in Bangalore. It can provide services ranging from market research to email and database management, web development and even business plans and legal research.

I'll admit that I haven't given it a go (although I'm tempted just to see what it's like) but, according to Brickwork, Australians have already discovered the benefits of outsourcing to its shores.

According to its website: "Brickwork India provides remote assistance to the director of a leading Australian Pork industry marketing, research and policy development company. We provide him remote assistance in preparing presentations, designing templates, research thus freeing up his time to focus on building his business.

"The director speaks at various conferences but due to his work he is not able to spend quality time preparing it. We assist him in designing the template and preparing the presentations as per his requirements. We also provide remote assistance in the research for articles, information and generating reports for his analysis."

Would you outsource to a company like Brickwork? If you have already done so, what's your experience been like?

Share your knowledge to increase your client base. Savvy small business entrepreneurs know that sharing knowledge will result in more leads and an increased client base. I know some business people feel that sharing their knowledge and expertise is like giving away their intellectual property for free.

However, the reality is that an increasing number of small business entrepreneurs are realising that generously sharing their expertise can result in more sales, more clients and more money.

That's because when you willingly share your knowledge - even in providing free advice in certain situations - you are demonstrating that you are an expert. People can actually experience first hand that you know what you're talking about. It instills confidence and builds your credibility.

However, we don't always have a chance to "show off" our expertise. Which is where seminars come in. If you actually have specialist knowledge in a certain area, why not run a seminar?

Why seminars work

Apart from being an additional source of income, it's an ideal way to generate leads for your business. After all, if people enrol, at least you already know they are interested in what you have to say.

The key here is to ensure that you are genuine in your approach. While your seminar participants are a great source of lead generation, if you spend too much time trying to sell your services, they'll feel ripped off. Make sure all participants leave with their knowledge enriched and with practical tools they can implement themselves.

Chances are that some of them will use the skills they have learnt from you and put them into action. However, there will also be some who are grateful for a better understanding of your topic but are happy to outsource that function. And it's likely that you might be their first port of call.

Who's doing it?Here are some examples of smart small business entrepreneurs who are running seminars.

Kathryn's Mint is running workshops in Sydney and Melbourne called "Show me the money". These are designed for small business entrepreneurs to understand what they need to do to "turn financial understanding into a competitive advantage".

Linda Hailey, consultant author of Kickstart Marketing: The No Nonsense System for Boosting Your Small Business, is running a range of seminars throughout NSW and Victoria.

What does it take?In short, expertise and a willingness to share it. I don't believe you needs bells, whistles and a fancy Powerpoint presentation to make this happen. But you do need valuable information, a good set of notes for people to take home and a punchy, interesting style of delivery.

I went to a presentation recently where the facilitator told us how bored he was because he had delivered the seminar so many times. Immediately, I knew I was wasting my time. If you're not excited about what you have to say, how can you expect other people to be?

When does your business go from small to medium? Last week, I was speaking to a small business entrepreneur who was very proud of the fact that her business was no longer a small business. With offices in three capitals cities and an increased turnover, she could now officially consider her venture as a medium-sized enterprise.

Celebrating this milestone with a few drinks, I realised how important it is not only to celebrate your milestones in business, but to make sure you identify what your milestones are going to be in the first place. Otherwise how will you know when to break out the bubbly?

As entrepreneurs, we can often be so busy with the daily grind - marketing, accounting, sales and the day-to-day operations of business - that we can forget to put markers in place to show us when we have reached key points in the growth of our business.

I recently had a meeting with my business partners on a new enterprise we are launching. We made a point to determine at the outset what the milestones for our business would look like. These ranged from financial targets to less tangible (but equally important) milestones.

Everyone's milestones are going to be different. The key is to ensure they are meaningful to you. For example, for one person a meaningful milestone might be when the business turns over $1 million a year. For another, it might be: "When it's running without me so I can sit on my yacht once a week without worrying".

Apart from determining what your milestone is going to be, it's also a good idea to determine from the outset, what you're going to do to celebrate reaching it. Whether you want to head out for a fancy dinner, treat yourself to a holiday or throw a party for staff, it will certainly make your milestone memorable. As frivolous as this sounds, it can do wonders for motivation and morale.

Now some small business entrepreneurs I've spoken to think it's a milestone just to make it through another week in business. I know of some business owners who are doing it pretty tough. That doesn't mean you don't need milestones - you do, more than ever. Sometimes, it's these small wins that are going to keep you going through the dark times. It just means your celebrations are going to have to be done on the cheap!

Welcome to the first business day of the new financial year. Which means it's a good time to put some new year's resolutions into action. There's no doubt that last Friday would have been frenetic for many small business entrepreneurs.

Tens of thousands of businesses around the country would have been busy paying bills in order to reduce their income as much as possible before 30 June, transferring money into superannuation and getting their books into shape. I was talking to my solicitor on Friday. He said: "Everyone's going crazy today. It's the end of financial year and everyone's making big decisions. It's going nuts."

Now with 30 June out of the way, it's time to concentrate on the new year. While there are a myriad of possible resolutions you can make for your business, one that makes the most sense right now is to review your accounts and finances.

Many businesses have their accounting system on track. But I know of just as many businesses who have an accounting system that is created mostly by guesswork. Some don't even have anything that can be called an accounting system.

If you fall in this category, it could be time to get a robust framework that can provide you with meaningful reports to help you make decisions about your business. So what do you have to consider?

1. What kind of system do you have?
If you're still working with handwritten invoices and receipts in a shoe box, with a few Excel spreadsheets thrown in, consider whether it's time to go electronic. At a basic level, the Tax Office offer free record keeping software called eRecord. It's definitely not the best accounting software in the world, but if you have simple transactions it may suit you. It will also help you calculate and fill in your BAS form each quarter. It's free, so you can download it and see if it works for you.

If you're ready to progress to something more advanced, then software like Quicken or MYOB will generate useful reports so you can track pretty much any data you input - from ageing receivables to sales forecast and payroll/superannuation costs. In most cases, you can "test drive" the software for free before deciding if you want to pay for the full version.

2. Bookkeeper or DIY?When it comes to the actual administration and entering data into your accounting software system, you need to determine if the most efficient way to go is to do it yourself - or outsource it to a bookkeeper. If you are new to business, it's my strong recommendation that you do the book-keeping yourself in the first instance. This is purely so you can get a handle on what's involved and how transactions are treated. When you are confident about this, then outsource it.

If you have no idea where to start, it may be worthwhile to get a bookkeeper in early on to help set up your system and show you how to use it. But you should never bury your head in the sand and hand over all responsibility to a bookkeeper if you don't have a firm grasp of how it all works.
3. Good accounting advice
Get yourself a good accountant. An accountant - who is distinct from your bookkeeper - should be someone who does more than just file your tax returns. Ideally you should look for someone who you can share your business goals with. Therefore, they can help you make financial decisions based on those goals.

Good accountants will also be able to give you advice on optimising your tax position and structuring your business.

If your accounting system could do with an improvement, now's the time to do it. If you procrastinate, another quarter will pass and then it will be too easy to convince yourself that you'll have to wait till next financial year before you makeover your accounting system.